150+ Reasons to Move

This list was originally published in 2008 and has since expanded to more than 150 reasons to consider a move to Keene, if you are, or want to be a liberty activist. The list was most recently updated in January of 2016.

Keene is a destination that ranks highly on many activist’s list of possible destinations in the Shire. From an activist perspective, it is challenging and full of exciting, ground floor opportunity. Whatever your brand of activism, whether outreach, political, disobedience/noncooperation, street theater, or media, you are welcome here. Here are some reasons why you should consider a move to Keene. Please feel free to link to, copy, and use this list however you like. Please visit the Shire Society Forum for discussion of this list. If you’re ready to visit Keene, check out our Visit page. If you’re ready to make the move, drop by our forum’s Housing and Jobs/Opportunities sections.

Keene Liberty Activism

There is much to do in Keene! Here are some of the regularly scheduled activist opportunities happening in Keene as of this publication. In addition, you’ll see some historic activism that originated in Keene. Please see our Calendar to see just some of what is happening this month.

Robin Hood of Keene – Keene’s “Robin Hooders” hit global news in May 2013 when the “City of Keene” sued us. Robin Hood and his Merry Men rescue motorists from being written parking tickets by depositing coins before the meter maids can reach the expired meters. They then leave cards on the windshields of the cars so drivers know who is responsible and giving the owners a chance to send in a contribution to the effort. Stay tuned to the Free Keene blog for the latest on this developing story.

Don’t Take the Plea Deal Outreach – Liberty activists in front of the courthouse handing out “Don’t Take the Plea Deal” flyers to victims of the “justice” system, informing of them of their rights.

Events Outreach – From flyering attendees of Music Fest and Pumpkin Fest to an outreach booth at the Cheshire Fair, activists are out in the community sharing the ideas of liberty.

College Outreach – Activists visit Keene State College with signage and flyers, reaching out to students with our pro-liberty message, and most frequently Cop Block know-your-rights-flyers.

Video Production – Besides producing video for multiple youtube channels, activists in Keene have historically been involved in the local cable access channel, Cheshire TV, where two Free State Project early movers currently sit on the board as of January 2016 and have been involved since 2006.

Keene Copblock – Keene has been the home of CopBlock founders Ademo Freeman and Pete Eyre. Keene police are well-acclimated to being watched by CopBlockers’ cameras.

First Responders – Keene is relatively small and with our various communications methods described below, it’s easy for activists to respond to those in need of assistance.

Courtroom Activism – Have you ever refused to stand for a robed man? We do it in court all the time up here. We’re regularly in-court and outside the courthouse supporting activists and other peaceful people aggressed against by the terrible state.

Chalk the Police – yearly event founded by CopBlocker and Free Keene blogger Kate where activists chalk Central Square with messages of peace and accountability. Here’s what happened in 2012.

Shire Choir – Activists joining their voices in song and addressing issues in a warm and fun manner. The Shire Choir began by visiting state liquor stores and singing anti-war-on-drugs songs to point out the hypocrisy of the state in that they cage peaceful people for selling drugs while selling one of the most dangerous drugs.

Civil Disobedience / Noncooperation – Keene is the world destination for pro-liberty civil disobedience and noncooperation! Various activists have been arrested for all kinds of “crimes” here that do not involve a victim. We even made a movie about one of those people.

4:20 Celebrations – In Sept. of 2009, 4:20s began to be held daily in Central Square and kept going strong (with as many as more than 100 participants) for months, despite aggression by Keene Police in the beginning. Here’s a great article about them from Cannabis Culture. Central Square was basically won as a DMZ for cannabis usage. 4:20s are still held on occasion, recently including many days in a row before and during Rich Paul’s cannabis trial.

Nightcaps – In 2009, Central Square had been mostly won by activists as a DMZ for personal freedom, so it seemed smoking cannabis and even “open container” could happen anytime there without police intervention. With that in mind, in 2010, Ademo and Pete from Liberty on Tour kicked off the well-attended “nightcaps” in Central Square. Though uncommon these days, they have been known to pop up from time-to-time during nice Summer weather. Open containers of alcohol are enjoyed and cannabis consumed as well. Good times!

Getting involved with other activist movements – From Occupy Keene to the tea party, democrats to republicans to the NH Liberty Party, liberty activists are getting involved.

Shire Society – Keene is the home of the Shire Society declaration. Declare your personal independence from the coercive state society and join the Shire Society! Check “The Shire” tab at the top of this site to see some of the Shire happenings.

Keenevention – This convention ran for three years and brought activists from across the Shire and elsewhere and had an activism/moving-to-NH focus for its panels.

Keene Activist ToolsKeene activists have a unique set of tools for both outreach and internal communications.

Flyers and Trifolds – Please visit the Tools page here on Free Keene for a list of some of the fliers and trifolds we regularly hand out to the community.

Telegram – Keene activists are using Telegram to converse and organize off-Facebook

Riot – Encrypted, decentralized chat used by a bunch of Monadnock libertarian activists and others statewide.

Porcupine 411 – Shire-wide voicemail delivery system with hundreds of recipients. Leave a message and it’s distributed within seconds.

Two-way Radios – For instant activist communications, many are armed with two-way radios.

Facebook groups – Various groups exist that facilitate Keene activism. Connect with activists in real life to learn about them.

The Shire Forum – This forum pre-dates Facebook and used to be known as the Free Keene Forum, so there is a lot of Keene activity there. This is a great alternative to Facebook for activist communication and is open to the public.

Keene Social Activity and Community InvolvementEvery week activists gather to forge friendships and help the community. Activists involve themselves in local charity because they believe in helping others – on a consensual basis.

Social Sundays – Activists meet weekly on Sundays for “Social Sundays” and socialize, strategize, and brainstorm.

Bitcoin Meetups – As of January 2016, we currently have two – the first Sunday of the month at 5:30pm at Local Burger on Main St. (they accept bitcoin!) and another one that rotates to different eateries, where we pitch the waiter on accepting extra tips in bitcoin. Visit the Keene Bitcoin Network on facebook for the latest.

Free Streets Project – The houses at the corner of Leverett and River streets in Keene are owned by and occupied by a bunch of Free State Project participants. Help us build the Free Streets by buying and renting homes in the area!

Free Press Publications Newspaper – Free Press Publications is an independent alternative media and publishing company, founded in June 2009, with the mission of “ensuring a FREE PRESS for the FREEDOM MOVEMENT” and is committed to spreading the message of peace, freedom, love and liberty. FPPNews is based in Keene and is available in newspaper form across the Shire.

Peace, Love, Liberty Radio – Darryl W. Perry brings you news, views and opinions while promoting the ideas of peaceful interaction, three times weekly.

FreeKeene.com – Multi-user, multimedia blog based in Keene with bloggers from across new Hampshire. Features include a calendar, forum, video of activism, free audiobooks, and more.

Pirate Radio Station – In Keene you could hear liberty-oriented talk radio (LRN.FM) 24/7 on Liberty 94.3 from Aug 2012-Apr 2013 and prior to that on 107.5 back in 2009-2010 – hopefully the free radio station will be back soon.

Keene’s Challenges

Keene is a challenging opportunity. If you want easy street, you should look at some other areas of the state. On the other hand if you’re ready to be the change you wish to see in the world, this is where you want to be. With that in mind, here are some of the challenges in Keene:

Courtroom Crackdown – The Keene courts have prohibited media devices from their entire buildings and have arrested several activists over it. This situation continues to develop.

Militarization of Keene Police – the feds gave the Keene police a BEARCAT despite the people of Keene being nearly all against it.

Close proximity to both Massachusetts and Vermont + college town = lots of people who support the state.

Local Haters – They say you don’t take flak until you’re over the target. Over a decade of effective, visible, principled liberty activism has created in Keene what it would anywhere – opposition. Hitpiece blogs, flyers, and hate groups have come and gone over the years, but the hate will always be present whenever the status quo is challenged. Most libertarians in other states aren’t effective, so they never get haters. No one said this liberty thing would be easy, but with numbers, we’ll win. The liberty ideas are the most moral and humane. Don’t let ’em get you down.

Keene’s Advantages and Opportunities

It’s not all doom and gloom – the future is bright here in Keene. Here are some already existing advantages as well as a few activist opportunities. Of course, you can always create your own opportunities and activists that like your idea may join you.

Voluntarists, Agorists, and Free Marketeers will find a number of like-minded individuals in Keene. The voluntarist viewpoint is the core of the activist community in Keene.

Quick Response Times – Keene is so small, when a call goes out for activists to help others, they have been known to move fast and arrive on-scene within moments.

Ease of access to the aggressors – Keene is the county seat, and both courts in the same building downtown – those living downtown can easily walk or bike there.

Keene cops are not as nasty as bigger cities like Manchester. They are more tolerant of cameras and experienced around activists. Some, like Shane Maxfield are openly friendly to liberty ideas. Additionally, the Keene police per 1,000 population ratio is lower than the NH average.

Keene bureaucrats tend to not be as unfriendly as bureaucrats in other cities. The small size of Keene means they are less anonymous than bureaucrats in bigger cities, so they have to keep up their image to some extent.

Highest concentration of liberty-oriented media in the world – radio, television, internet, and print. Nowhere else will the general population encounter the liberty message as often as they do in Keene. All this media serves as an activist attractor as well, meaning more people will come to Keene over time, hopefully including you!

The establishment is confused, angry, and unsure of what to do about liberty activism in Keene. Some seem to believe they can arrest or sue their way out of it, but that just gets publicized and more activists move because of their aggression. It must be frustrating to be a bureaucrat or politician in Keene.

Our first candidate for city council in 2007 received thousands of dollars in free press coverage including two front page news articles and radio and tv interviews. That same candidate spent $70 and did very little campaigning, yet received over 22% of the vote. The 2009 election resulted in 24% voting for NH native and Free Keene blogger Nick Ryder. In 2010, early mover Andrew Carroll set new vote records for Keene activists in his run for state rep. Keene does not have very many political activists, so it’s a wide open opportunity for the more politically inclined.

It’s easy to be a big fish in the small pond of Keene if you are interested in politics, as there are so few people out here. Keene has 1/4th the population as Manchester, so campaigning is easier and your public profile is larger. In some cases, candidates run unopposed for local election. You could be that opposition.

Operation Politically Homeless outreach shows that Keene residents are overwhelmingly either libertarian or liberal. Self-described liberals tend to be somewhat easier to convert to understanding liberty.

Liberty-friendly Housing – Available but always in high demand. Investors may want to consider purchasing a multi-family home, owner-occupying, and creating options for incoming movers while collecting rent and living with all your bills paid. Also, considering buying near the Free Streets Project.

Cheshire TV – This cable access channel is the only local TV source in Keene and is therefore highly watched in the community. You can create your own television show, or work on one of the existing liberty oriented shows.

WKBK 1290/107.5 – Popular news/talk station with no call screening. Great way to get your pro-liberty views out to a general audience.

WKNH 91.3 – College radio station with on-air opportunities. Start your own show!

The Keene Sentinel – daily paper known locally as “The Slantinel” which is pretty good about printing letters to the editor.

Internships and jobs may be available at the above established old-media organizations.

Population as of 2010 is over 23,400 + an estimated 10,000 more who come in during the daytime from the Monadnock region, VT, and MA during the day to work and shop (no sales tax!)

Keene is young – the median age is 36.7

Keene is mostly female – 52.76%

Keene’s residents are mostly single.

Cost-of-living in Keene is lower than the national average.

Keene has more bitcoin-accepting businesses per capita than any other city in NH, and more than even San Francisco, which has been crowned in the media as the most-bitcoin-accepting, but Keene has more per capita, according to CoinMap.org.

Wideband and Broadband Internet is available via Time Warner Cable. DSL is also available from Fairpoint.

4G cell phone service is available through Verizon, US Cellular, AT&T, and T-Mobile.

Lots of free WiFi.

Variety of Living Options – You can choose a more “urban” lifestyle in downtown Keene, opt for the suburbs, or go a little further and you have rural living!

Keene is conveniently located in a valley. Snowfall and wind are limited compared to surrounding areas.

As it is located in a valley in Southern NH, Keene is not as cold as the northern portions of the state.

In an interview on Free Talk Live, Lew Rockwell, the founder of the Mises Institute and creator and editor of LewRockwell.com, called Keene “The northern capital of libertarianism” and suggested it was the “epicenter” of NH liberty activism. Lew identified himself as an “enthusiastic supporter” of the Free State Project, saying, “I definitely endorse the Free State Project”. About Keene, he said “[i] especially like what you guys are doing in Keene”, adding that activists “do amazing things here”.

“I moved to Keene in 2004 and really enjoy living here. It has some big city conveniences without the big city size. It’s pretty, the weather is better than the immediately surrounding areas, the power stays on, it’s easy to get around, and we’ve made some really great friends here.” – Varrin Swearingen, Former president of the Free State Project

“I moved to the Keene area because residents were doing fun things and invited me. Now I live here and invite others who love questioning authority, pointing out injustice, committing random acts of charity, and creating public displays of a enthusiasm. Get out here and start having fun!” – Lauren Canario, Superactivist

“When selecting a place to base MotorhomeDiaries.com; Keene, New Hampshire – the emerging home of libertarian activism – was the only choice. I’m excited to be part of a community of principled libertarians who reject government violence in favor of a voluntary society.” – Jason Talley, Motorhome Diaries

“For a long time I’ve admired the work of the Free-Staters, especially those in Keene, who are leading the peaceful evolution toward a voluntary society. I want to use this as the model for my work with the activist network at Fr33Agents.net (site is now offline).” – Pete Eyre, Motorhome Diaries

“I moved to Keene because it’s a beautiful town. Lots of old buildings, lots of old trees, lots of shopping, all in a small town. Drive five minutes and you are in the country side. Like women? It’s a college town.” – Puke, Early Mover

“Moving to NH was great because now I have friends of liberty for neighbors :)” – Christopher Cantwell, comedian

I decided to move because from the first day that I was there, I felt like I would never be bored. There is a whole community of people from all walks of life that were kind enough to let me be a part of whats happening. – Andrew, Early Mover

“Big enough to support a wide variety of businesses yet small enough to maintain its neighborly charm. What more could you want from this little big town nestled in the beautiful valleys of New England?” – Paul Ott, Early Mover

“Folks in Keene are friendly and down-to-earth!” – Menno, Early Mover

“Keene is a great place to hang out with other liberty activists and have fun storming the castle.” – Russell Kanning, Publisher, NH Free Press

“Most are wondering why on earth you haven’t moved yet. We’re wondering what you are waiting for. I can tell you that I am living a life beyond my wildest dreams. Though I have very little materially anymore, I am wealthy with a pleasure for life that I never knew existed.” – Kurt Hoffman, early mover and civil disobedience activist, written from jail in Letter 14.

“Though I am not a Free Stater or Free Keener (I disagree with some of their tactics and issues and respectfully told them so), I am very grateful to them for making the necessary noise about [The BEARCAT] and getting the national exposure it needs.Their passionate activism is what is missing in this country and I appreciate them for their commitment.”- Jeffrey Scott of Occupy Keene in a letter to the editor of the Sentinel.

More endorsements coming!

Media Endorsements

“For those of you that follow or hear about Free Keene and the Free State Project and think that the members are into ‘shenanigans’ or worse you believe New Hampshire State Representative Cynthia Chase who believes that the principles of liberty, sound money, and free markets are a threat to NH and actually wishes to pass measures that will restrict the “freedoms” of those in the Free State Project I’d like to voice my opinion. Sure, there are times when perhaps they “get in the face” of people. Perhaps they goto extremes with their views: the counsel chambers drinking game comes to mind. Before you judge these folks….listen to the underlying message first. The rest is pure promotion so that you WILL LISTEN. Did I stop and look at the video of the topless TSA protester at the Manchester Airport? You bet your ass! After staring at her breasts…I realized she had a good point. I wouldn’t have given the video the time of day otherwise. Remember, sometimes you have to use sensationalism in order to be heard in today’s society. I’ve been experiencing FIRST HAND some of the issues they have been talking about for years. When a police officer tells you that he will not get involved when your name is FORGED on a check written to you….in order for it to be illegally cashed….you have to wonder what laws they use. It’s certainly not the law’s I’ve been told I had.” – Scott Antonivich, AKA “Parker Springfield”, former morning show host and program director of K-Rock in Keene

“most [Free Staters] live in and around the city of Keene” – Chris Faraone, Journalist, Boston Phoenix. Chris was wrong about this statement, but the amount of activism around here certainly seems to have given him that impression!

Unintentional Endorsements

At only just over 5% of the FSP having moved (May 2013), NH Labor News blogger Matt Murray said this: “The FSP has caused a significant impact on the state. While the FSP has not reached their 20,000 person goal, they already have a significant political presence in NH.” Murray also says this about the activists who have chosen Keene as their destination: “The ones who have settled there are the most extreme of this extremist organization.”

“Free State Project holds extremist views and their participants have wreaked havoc in areas like Keene and Grafton. We’ve seen a steady stream of Free Staters taunting the Keene police and ending up in the Westmoreland jail, costing taxpayers dearly.” – Pam Martens, Local Busybody (Update on Pam in 2011 – She and her husband sold their house in Westmoreland and left the area.)

“Not sure how this ends — I’m hoping some town in New Hampshire will step up and say how much they want these people and maybe they’ll just leave. But there seem to be more each day, all here with the idea that they will turn Keene into their model town, so who knows.” – Mike Caulfield, Blue Hampshire Blogger